Stoner takes Valencia victory

Eurosport - Sun, 26 Oct 19:12:00 2008

Casey Stoner won a straightforward Valencia MotoGP from pole despite temporarily losing his lead on the first lap to Dani Pedrosa.

Third behind Spaniard Pedrosa was 2008 world champion Valentino Rossi, while another home rider Jorge Lorenzo secured the rookie of the year title as Andrea Dovizioso came in fourth.

Sheffield rider James Toseland fell back from fifth on the grid to 11th by the end, while his Yamaha Tech 3 team-mate Colin Edwards finished sixth behind Nicky Hayden.

Stoner was at his best on the Ducati Marlboro after Pedrosa of Repsol Honda sneaked P1 from him at the first corner on a sunny day in southern Spain after the wet previous sessions.

Immediately hitting back to retake the lead, Pedrosa never looked likely to catch the Australian as he slowly but steadily built a lead at the front.

Rossi, who began in 10th after the adverse weather conditions in qualifying, went on the charge and jumped three places almost immediately, while by the third lap he was fifth ahead of Dovizioso and Loris Capirossi.

Lorenzo dropped from seventh at the start to 10th but, with Dovizioso needing to win to stand any chance of snatching the rookie title from him, looked comfortable as he climbed to eighth position by the final lap.

Hayden, in his last race for Honda after nine years with the Japanese manufacturer, was overtaken by Edwards on the first lap but fought back to reclaim his third spot.

However with Rossi eating up the tarmac and Dovizioso also keen to give his JiR Scot Honda squad a rousing send-off, he lost two places and was unable to make them up.

Shinya Nakano showed skill in acquiring an seventh-place finish.

Capirossi, who had started well in making up two places for sixth, fell back on his Rizla Suzuki and finished in ninth.

Marco Melandri, desperate to show Ducati what he could do before departing after a nightmare season, fought from last on the gird to as high as 10th - but lost ground in the latter part of the GP and dropped to 16th by its end.

Rossi ends the 2008 season as world champion for an eighth time, ahead of Stoner and Pedrosa in the standings.